Peggy and Virgil Peterson at their home in front of a picture of Sharp Kid.PIONEER PHOTO/Virginia Giorgis

By VIRGINIA GIORGIS

Pioneer Editor

LYMAN – The theme for this year’s Bridger Valley Pioneer Days Rodeos is “Comes a Horseman,” and sums up this year’s Pioneer Days Rodeos Grand Marshals.

Virgil and Peggy Peterson, Mountain View, were selected to wear the hats of the Grand Marshal this year.

The Petersons both grew up in southwestern Wyoming. Virgil remembers his grandfather running wild horses for a living on the high plains south of Rock Springs in the Dutch John and Browns Park area, an area that lends itself to the notoriety of the Hole in the Wall gang. And wild horses still roam the area today.

Next month the Petersons will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary.

When Virgil and Peggy got engaged, she got the diamond and he got a quarter horse–one Peggy bought from Bert Powers. The gift of the quarter horse to the man of her dreams was like “opening Pandora’s box, but it was leaking,” Peggy said.

Virgil said the gift was his first quality horse as before he mainly worked with “rough stock.” He earned his spurs team roping and riding saddle broncs in rodeos.

They describe their life of working with horses as “coming up through the trenches.” It was a lifetime learning experience to be able to breed, train and sell horses nationwide.

After getting his first quarter horse, Virgil’s interest in breeding peaked. The Petersons have owned “three great stud horses.” The studs were Mormon Meteors, Beuregards and The Sharp Kid.

The Sharp Kid, 16.5 hands and 1400 pounds has won conformation championships and proved to be the start of many championship titles. He has won at least 12 state championships, one state all-around horse at state fair in which he “beat out 600 horses,” Joe Hickey, rodeo chairman said. “And some of the losers, had been world champs the year before.”